Chinese media has lashed out at a recent video game that it claims portrays the country in a negative light and "demonises the image of China".

In an article by the South China Morning Post, it reports that Battlefield 4: China Rising - a first-person shooter set in Shanghai - has been criticised in military newspaper, Zhongguo Guofangbao, stating it was "discrediting China's image abroad and distorting the truth in an effort to mislead young people".

The editorial stated: "American soldiers attack Shanghai [and] exchange fire with the People's Liberation Army. China's domestic unrest is the [game's] backdrop, and the US military must fight for peace and uncover China's conspiracies"

The state media outlet claims "to discredit one country's image in the eyes of other countries is a new form of cultural penetration and aggression."

The game's main villain is a renegade Chinese general and the newspaper believes the increase of the country's national strength has turned the western world's attention from seeing Russians or dodgy London gangsters as the common enemy to now being China.

When the article hit the internet it was met by many in support of the game and dismissed the claims it portrayed China in a negative light.